


The Best Years?

by bluemadridista



Category: Football RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Angst, Bisexual Female Character, Bisexual Male Character, Bisexuality, Established Relationship, F/F, F/M, Fanfiction, Humor, Long-Distance Friendship, Long-Distance Relationship, M/M, Sexual Content, Skype
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-11-22
Updated: 2015-06-14
Packaged: 2018-02-26 15:20:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 19,217
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2656853
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bluemadridista/pseuds/bluemadridista
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Basically a crazy high school AU in which I experiment with new pairings and adding in some ladies!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing, but the idea and the OFCs.
> 
> The tags are for the entire fic, so not all of the pairings/characters are in this first chapter. Also, we haven't quite gotten to a lot of angst or sexual content yet either. It's coming though! More characters may appear later on as well, but this is what I have planned for now! Hope you enjoy! xx
> 
> Thanks to [KingFabulous](http://archiveofourown.org/users/KingFabulous/) for the beta on Chapter One.

 

The start of a new school year is difficult for everyone.  The frightened five-year-old leaving their parents for the first time to start kindergarten, the eighteen-year-old facing the first day of their last year in high school, the parents watching their five-year-old walk into a classroom full of strangers, the parents full of trepidation and hope for their “baby” that will soon be leaving them and starting their own lives after they finish that last year…

Stevie paused his typing and stared at the screen of his laptop. He had been at this article for Out! Parents magazine for nearly an hour, and he hadn’t even finished the first paragraph. Ironically, he thought perhaps worrying over the start of school for his own children was wrecking his nerves and giving him a touch of writer’s block. He pushed the laptop closed, and rolled his chair back from the impressive wooden desk before him. His entire office was filled with impressive solid wood furniture - the desk, bookshelves, a chaise lounge, coffee table, and a sofa table in front of the massive window on the side of the room. The wood was all the finest cherry, some with ornate carvings adorning them, like the legs and bordering wood of the chaise. It was a beautiful room, perfect for inspiration – usually.

Stevie ran his fingers through his short dirty blond hair. The first day of school was the following Monday, exactly one week away. What would all of the parents who read Out! do without his parenting advice article? He was actually quite sure they would cope just fine, but he would feel terrible just the same if he didn’t meet the deadline. The magazine deal was more than just a job. Owning Lucy’s Bookshelf,  the most popular (okay, only) bookstore in town was a job. Writing his best-selling novels was a job. Writing parenting articles for the number one magazine targeted at parents in the LGBT community was something he did, because he was a gay parent, and because he believed that gay parents (just like any others) should have a periodical that recognized them. After all, the heterosexual community had plenty. He had been writing for the magazine less than a year, but he had already earned a lot of praise from its readers. He wanted to keep it that way.

“Writer’s block?”

Stevie jumped at the sound of his husband’s voice. He had been so lost in thought that he hadn’t heard the door open. He looked up to find Xabi standing in the doorway with a sympathetic smile on his face. His gorgeous eyes twinkled, and Stevie immediately smiled despite his worries.

“A bit,” he admitted with a sigh.

Xabi took this as an invitation to enter the room. He walked around the desk, and took a seat on Stevie’s lap. When they lived together whilst attending university, Xabi used to have to sit on Stevie’s lap to stop him writing. It was all his then boyfriend seemed to want to do - not that an English literature major didn’t appreciate a good writer. He placed a soft kiss on his forehead. “The novel or the article?” he asked, running his fingers through Stevie’s short hair.

“Article.”

“I thought as much.”

“Of course you did.” The sweet smile was still on Stevie’s face. It was the smile he only awarded Xabi. Only the man who knew him better than anyone, and loved him anyway deserved that special smile. He leaned his head over on his chest. “The new school year is so difficult to write about when I’m worrying over it.”

“There’s nothing to worry over,” said Xabi as he placed sweet little kisses on his husband’s head. “Our children are amazing.” He read through the words on the screen as he spoke. He thought it a decent start. Stevie had always been much too hard on himself. He reached out, and tweaked a few minor things.

Stevie pressed a kiss to his chest as a reward, though he hadn’t noticed what Xabi actually fixed. “I know. I know they’re all brilliant, but I still worry. It’s the last year of high school for Lucy and Eden. Iker is at the crucial point where he needs to get serious about choosing Law School or Grad School. And Lourdes. Oh, don’t even get me started on Lou.”

“Lou is in preschool. You don’t need to get started on Lou.” Xabi chuckled. “We put her in a football kit, give her a juice box, and send her on her way. She’s the easiest one we’ve got.”

“She told me yesterday that she wants to start law school after preschool.”

Xabi laughed heartily. His upper body bounced, shaking Stevie’s head that still rested on his chest. He had been a lawyer before they decided to have another child. Before Lourdes was born, he left his highly successful firm, and put his old literature degree to work. He had been an English Lit teacher at his childrens’ high school going on five years. “I believe it.”

“‘I’ll just go with Bubby Iker,’ she said when I told her I didn’t think it would be possible.”

“She’s a little lady on a mission, that one.”

“Speaking of, it’s nearly seven. She’ll be up any minute now wondering where her pancakes are. One ‘Daddy’ promised her pancakes last night.”

Stevie lifted his head to look up at Xabi. He arched his brow. “She wouldn’t settle for Papa-made waffles, would she?”

“What do you think?” Xabi slid off Stevie’s lap. He kissed his lips and then started out of the room. “I mixed up the batter for you already. Don’t tell Lou! Everything’s ready in the kitchen. Come on down.”

~~~~

“Marco! Come on! Poppa and I are going for a run! Join us!” John shouted up the stairs to his seventeen-year-old adopted son. He and his husband, Frank, had adopted young Marco from a German orphanage ten years earlier. He had been in the orphanage since age two when his parents were killed in a car accident. The first couple of years had been difficult for Marco. He couldn’t remember his parents, but he knew they existed. He was fully aware at seven years of age that the two men taking him from the only home he had known were not his real parents. After some time though, it smoothed out and they became a wonderful family. The men loved Marco like he was their biological son, and Marco had come to think of his fathers as the only parents he had ever had.

Marco ran out of his room, and stared down over the railing on the upstairs landing and hallway. “I don’t feel much like a run, Dad.”

Frank walked out of the kitchen holding a bottle of water. He stopped at his husband’s side, and peered up at their son. “Marco, are you feeling okay?”

Marco chuckled. “Yeah, Poppa. I’m fine. Just don’t feel like running this morning.”

“You run every morning,” John said in an accusatory tone.

“Right, so skipping one morning won’t hurt,” Marco retorted.

“Are you sure everything is okay?” Frank asked. His tone wasn’t as accusatory as his husband’s had been, but he was suspicious as well.

“Everything’s fine. I’ll hit the gym later.” Marco waved his parents off and retired to his room.

John and Frank exchanged puzzled looks. “You think he’s up to something?” John asked.

Frank sipped his water, and shook his head. “I doubt it. Maybe he just doesn’t want to go running with his dads.”

“Oh, no. Have we finally reached that point where he doesn’t want to be seen with us?”

“John, it’s one run. We’re okay. Let’s go.” Frank started off without his husband, jogging toward the front door of their house.

Marco waited until he heard the front door slam before he went back to his desk where his laptop was open, a Skype video chat open. “Sorry,” he said to the boy on the screen.

The boy, Mario, a blond, blue-eyed gorgeous German he’d met in a football chat room, smiles at him. The dimples in his cheeks made Marco’s stomach flip. “It’s okay. Was that your dad?”

“Both of them,” Marco said with a snort. “They wanted me to go for a run with them.”

“I thought I heard as much. You could have gone, you know?”

Marco shook his head. “We hardly ever get time to chat. You know how much I love our chats. It’s the only time I really get to speak German, and well… it’s you.” Marco smiled at the boy he would be proud to call his boyfriend if only they lived closer to one another. For now, they were friends who flirted and didn’t date other people.

“You didn’t tell them that though…”

Marco fidgeted nervously in his chair. He pulled his legs up and sat on them, but kicked them back out only a moment later. “I told you… I’m not ready to tell them about you, or… or me.”

“I know… I didn’t mean to attack you about that. I just mean, they probably think you’re mad at them, or ignoring them or something.”

“I’m seventeen. Isn’t that part of my job description?”

Mario laughed, and shook his head. “I guess so. You know… your dads seem kind of cool though, judging by the way you described them anyway. I’m sure they wouldn’t freak out over you coming out, or Skyping with a boy you met whilst fanboying over your national team.”

“Okay, there are so many things wrong with what you just said.” Marco laughed, and grabbed the bottle of water sitting on his desk to the right of his laptop. He took a sip, capped it, and set it aside again. “Firstly, my dads aren’t ‘cool.’ They’re dads. It’s against their very nature.”

Mario snorted. “They’re cooler than my parents, trust me. My parents are old and… straight.” He giggled.

“Straight, but understanding and loving.” Marco smiled. Although he would never call them “cool,” he admired Mario’s parents – or what he’d heard of them anyway. They were far older than his parents. They had their children late in life. Still, they tried to embrace modern technology, and relate to their children without being the parents who thought they should be best friends with their children’s friends, and other embarrassing things that some parents do.

“True,” Mario agreed with a nod.

“Also, my dads would so freak if I came out. Poppa might even cry. I think it’s secretly their dream. I mean, ever since I was old enough to know what relationships were, they told me I was free to love as I wished, but I know they secretly have this gay son wish. They might even have a party.”

“A coming out party could be nice!”

“Embarassing. A coming out party thrown by my parents would be embarrassing. My friends already know I’m gay. Why should I have a party to tell everyone else? They don’t matter.”

Mario shrugged and conceded defeat. “Okay, that makes sense.”

“Yes, it does. As far as not freaking out over me meeting you online - no, they probably wouldn’t. As long as I’m not meeting someone as old as them in a dark alleyway for sex, I’m sure they’d be fine. But the national team thing… they freak out about that daily. ‘Raised by two England supporters, but somehow you cling to your German football.’” Marco was quoting Dad on this. “‘Frank, where did we go wrong with him?’ Dad isn’t usually dramatic, but I get this every time there’s an international break.”

Mario was crying from laughing so hard before Marco had even finished speaking. “I guess that’s where I got lucky with my parents. Mom doesn’t really care, of course, but Dad loves football, and he wouldn’t hear of me supporting anyone, but Die Mannschaft.” Mario said the name of his national team in a voice that Marco assumed was meant to mock his father’s, though Marco couldn’t imagine the elder Götze sounding quite so gruff. The description Mario had given of him just didn’t match a gruff voice.

Marco just laughed. “It’s my blood, I tell my dads. To which Dad always replies something stupid like we should have brainwashed him straight from the orphanage.  They’re so dumb.” Marco said these things, but he still smiled at the thought of his parents. They acted dumb about football, but they were really the best he could have asked for.

“I understand where they’re coming from though. They adopted you when you were like three, right?”

“Seven. I was orphaned at two, but they didn’t get to me until I was seven. Five years in a German orphanage with lovely Germans who loved their football.”

Mario smiled. He admired the easy way Marco spoke of his past. He couldn’t imagine being orphaned and growing up the way Marco did, but Marco seemed unaffected by it. He was strong and brilliant and secure. One of the lucky ones, Mario’s mother had said when he shared Marco’s story with her. “Your poor dads will just have to deal with it then.”

“Yes, they will. They have got me to support Chelsea though, so they consider that a win.”

“No harm in supporting an English club until they face Dortmund in the Champions League, that is.”

“That will be a difficult day in my house,” Marco admitted with a laugh.

“Mario! It’s breakfast, dear!”

Marco’s ears pricked up at the sound of Mario’s mother’s voice. He had never heard or seen either of his parents. He hoped that perhaps she’d appear in front of the camera.

“That’s my mom,” Mario said what Marco had already figured out for himself. “I gotta go down for breakfast.”

Marco nodded. “That’s okay. I’ll probably try to catch up with my dads.”

“I’ll send you a message later,” Mario said with a smile.

Marco nodded again, and smiled to match Mario. “Say hello to your sister for me.” Mario had a twin sister called Elena, pronounced "Eleena," not "Elayna" and she was always quick to correct anyone. She was three minutes older than him, and never let him forget.

“Elena stayed over with her girlfriend, but I’ll tell her when she comes in later.” Mario rolled his eyes. He hated his sister’s girlfriend. Elena swore he just had a problem with his sister being a lesbian. It wasn’t that. Her girlfriend was just a bitch. Elena would discover this one day, and Mario hoped he could stop himself from saying “I told you so.”

“Ah, okay. Try not to give her too much trouble about staying over with her, okay? She’ll find out what a bitch she is one day.”

Mario sighed and nodded. “I gotta go now. Have a good morning!” He blew him a kiss, said goodbye, and ended the video call.

Marco sighed. His video chats with Mario were the highlight of his days recently, but they also brought about a sense of sadness. He wished to share them with his parents, but was unsure how they’d react. They were really open-minded, that was true, but he had told a small lie to Mario when he said they’d be fine with online romance. He wasn’t really sure how they’d feel about it. The topic had never come up in conversation. Maybe he would drop a few hints at breakfast later. He jumped up from his chair, and tugged on his running shoes. He had been dressed for his morning run already when the call from Mario came through. He ran out of the house, and quickly followed the route he and his fathers always took.

They lived in a small neighborhood. There were only five houses on the street, all with large yards. It was nice having neighbors and space, Dad always said. Theirs was the last house on the block, so he would pass all of his neighbors on his run. The first house he passed was that of the Alonso-Gerrard family. It sat diagonally to the left of his home. He was friends with the couple's eldest son and daughter. Next up on the right was a Polish-German family. They had only one son, Lukas. He and Lukas were friends as well. They’d been introduced by Lukas’ best friend, Lucía Alonso-Gerrard. “You have to meet my friend, Lukas,” she had told him when he moved to the neighborhood three years previously. “You’ll love his stupid face.” At the time, Marco wondered if she was insulting her so-called friend. After three years, he had come to learn that “stupid” was sometimes a term of endearment in Lucía’s world.

Marco jogged along past his neighbors' house and smiled at the fond memory of meeting the girl who went on to become one of his best friends. He was nearing the last two houses when he spotted his parents standing out front one of them. The last house on the left belonged to the Torres family. Their eldest son, Fernando, was gorgeous. The cheekbones. Marco nearly drooled at the mere thought of them. He didn't know the younger son well, but knew David, the Brazilian cousin that lived with them during the school year. He was one of the nicest people he'd ever met and definitely the one with the craziest hair!

On the right side of the street, where his parents currently stood, lived his school’s principal, Raúl Gonzalez, and his husband, Jose Maria Gutierrez (Guti, for short), the owner of the coffeehouse/bakes, Bake n' Brew (the Brew, for short), where Marco worked part-time during the school year and full-time over the summer. Their gorgeous son, Sergio (boyfriend of Cheekbones Torres), worked there as well, and Lucía’s brother, Eden.

Marco jogged to a stop beside Dad. His Golden Retriever, Sport, was sitting at John’s feet. John glanced over at Marco and smiled. Frank was in the midst of an animated conversation with Sr. Gonzalez that Marco knew better than to interrupt. John draped his arm over his son’s shoulders, and pulled him in for a side hug. Marco hugged him back, and then scratched Sport behind his ear. The dog turned and licked his hand to show his appreciation.

“That sounds so wonderful! I’m sure you’ll have no trouble with Lucía.”

Marco’s ears perked up. Why was his father discussing his best friend with the head of his school? He glanced up at his dad, silently asking just that, but John just shook his head. Either he didn’t know, or he wasn’t saying.

“I’m quite sure,” Raúl agreed. Then, he seemed to finally notice Marco’s presence. He turned toward him, smiling. “Marco! Hello! How are you? Last week of summer vacation.”

Marco nodded. Sr. Gonzalez was nice enough, but he had always intimidated Marco. For one, he was hot. Way too hot to be a principal. Plus, he was gay. Really openly, excitedly gay. His husband met him for lunch at school every day. Sometimes, they even ate in the canteen with the students. Once, Marco saw them kiss. Every conversation with Sr. Gonzalez afterward had been incredibly awkward. “Hello, Sr. Gonzalez.”

“Raúl!” Oh, that was another thing. Since their parents were friends, he insisted that Marco refer to him by his first name. No. “Are you ready for school?”

“Just about,” Marco said, staring at the ground as if the gravel beneath his running  shoes was super interesting. He wanted to ask why he had been talking about Lucía, but he was sure that would not be appropriate.

“You’ll have a new student at school this year,” Raúl said excitedly.

“Oh?” Marco finally glanced up from the captivating gravel.

“Guti and I are taking in a foster child. He’ll be moving in tomorrow.” The grin on Raúl’s face made Marco smile. He wasn’t best friends with his son, Sergio, but he was friendly enough to know how much Sergio adored his fathers and apparently with good reason. A father only wore that smile when he really and truly loved his children. Marco decided his hot principal was a pretty great man to already have so much love for this child that didn’t even live with him yet.

“That’s great, Sr…. Raúl. What’s he called?”

“Jesús,” Raúl said, still beaming. “Guti has already taken to calling him Jesúsito though. He’s quite small.” Raúl’s grin fell to a concerned frown. “He’s not been treated very well. I thought I would ask Lucía Alonso to watch over him, show him around. She’s the head of your class, and such a nice girl.” Raúl sounded like he needed someone to agree that Lucía was the girl for the job, so Marco nodded reassuringly. Raúl smiled. “Perhaps you could help her out?”

Marco knew the question came with no strings, no pressure. He could say no, but he was more than happy to do it. “Of course. I think Lucía is more than capable, but I’d be happy to help out. I assume he is our grade?” The latter came out sounding more like a question than a statement.

“Yes. Well, that is to say he should be, but I think he’s fallen a bit behind. I hope to bring him up to the correct level.”

Marco wondered if he should actually be getting all of these details, but he didn’t say anything. He simply nodded and smiled politely.

“Oh, listen to me rambling on when you’re in the middle of a run!” Raúl shook his head and waved his hand about as if he were swatting a fly away. “Go on back to your run. I need to get some breakfast for Sese and Guti anyway.”

John, Frank, and Marco waved and said goodbye before starting off. They stopped abruptly when Raúl called out to them once more. They all turned back simultaneously.

Raúl apologized, laughed, and said, “We’re having a small get together the day after tomorrow, a party, I guess you could say, to welcome Jesús to the family. You’re welcome to join us. We’ve extended casual invites to some of the neighborhood. We thought it would be nice of him to get to know the kids.”

“Of course, we’ll come by!” John called out. “Thank you!”

“Thank you too!” Raúl shouted as the small family resumed their running.

Frank and John talked amongst themselves, discussing their plans for dinner and such as they jogged across Main Street, and into the neighborhood across from theirs. The five houses were situated in a pattern identical to theirs. Two houses on either side, and one at the end of the “dead end.” Marco glanced to the left first to see if anyone had purchased the empty house. Before the summer, it had been inhabited by Lucía’s ex-boyfriend, David Silva, and his family. It stood empty still. The house across the street had also been empty (for nearly a year) before someone finally bought it. The sign out front read, “SOLD” in bold black letters, but Marco had yet to see the new owners. His fathers had mentioned something about them moving from Switzerland or Sweden, maybe.

Next door to the Swedish/Swiss family lived a really cute Brazilian called Oscar. He was bisexual, father to a baby that his ex-girlfriend gave him before he moved from Brazil, and had a massive crush on David, cousin of Cheekbones Torres. Oscar was a nice guy, but not someone Marco would necessarily call a friend. Marco felt kind of sorry for him. How difficult it must be to have a baby in high school. Across from the young Brazilian father lived the boyfriend of Stupid Face Podolski, Bastian.

As Marco and his dads jogged around the bend of the road, they passed in front of Juan Mata’s house. The tiny Asturian stood on his front porch kissing his boyfriend, a tall, thin boy called David de Gea. David was the best goalkeeper on the high school football squad, but beyond that Marco knew almost nothing about him. As he jogged away from the kissing couple,  Marco felt jealousy bubbling in his stomach. He would love to have a boyfriend to kiss on his porch. He picked up his pace, and rushed back home. Sport matched his speed, and raced home alongside him. John and Frank would continue jogging around town without them, but Marco wasn’t feeling it anymore. He wanted to get home to check his phone for a message from Mario.

~~~~

Lucía had just finished breakfast with her dads, brother, and little sister when her phone buzzed in her pocket. She washed up her portion of the dishes (her family always split the chores), and excused herself to her bedroom. The buzzing had been an incoming text message from her ex-boyfriend (and current best friend), David. It was short and to the point: Skype now.

Lucía grabbed her laptop from her desk, opened it, and flopped onto the end of her bed. She lay on her stomach, and opened Skype. A moment after logging in, she got a video call from Silva. “What is so important that you left that rude message?” she joshed.

“It wasn’t rude. It was short. To the point. I HAVE NEWS!”

“You better have news. I haven’t spoken to you in a month! Who goes on vacation and doesn’t take their cell phone? For a month!”

“It was my parents’ idea,” David rebutted. “Don’t you want to hear my news?!”

“Yes, yes! Go!”

“I MET SOMEONE!”

Lucía gasped and clapped her hands over her mouth. “Of the lady persuasion?”

David shook his head. “All man,” he said, giggling.

“OMG! YOU MET A GORGEOUS GUY ON VACATION?! THAT’S SO ROMANTIC!”

“I KNOW!”

“Tell me everything.”

“We met on my first night in Portugal. He’s in university!”

Lucía gasped again. “An older man??”

“An older, gorgeous man! I fell for him instantly. You want to see a pic?”

“Um, yes. Show me now.”

“I’ll send it to you.” David disappeared for a moment, and Lucía heard lots of typing and clicking. She received the photo a moment later, and opened it promptly. “SILVI, OMG.”

“I know! He’s so gorgeous. Like, how is he even real?”

“Gorgeous, yeah, but how many years has he been at university? He looks much older than us.”

“He’s only twenty-one. Chill.”

“Twenty-one? You’re seventeen.”

“The age of consent is sixteen.”

“Omg! You need to know about age of consent! Naughty!”

“No! We don’t… not really. I just… Don’t be a perv about it.”

“I was just pointing out a four year age gap. You’re the pervert bringing up age of consent.”

“Fine. But… I’ll be eighteen in two months! You know my parents aren’t half as bothered as you are.”

“I’m not bothered! I’m just surprised. I’m the only other person you’ve dated, so I’m surprised. And maybe a little jealous. I would like to have a gorgeous older man in my life.”

“You haven’t met anyone yet then?”

“Nope. You’re the only one with a big romantic summer romance happening.” Lucía grinned and flipped her reddish brown hair behind her. She might have had two fathers, but it was no mystery who was the biological father. Her hair was identical to Xabi’s except much longer and curly. “Are you two actually dating?” she asked.

“Sort of. Long distance dating.” Silva frowned. “He lives in Barcelona.”

“Aww.” Skepticism suddenly hit Lucía. Was this guy using her beautiful, sweet friend? “Babe, are you sure a long distance thing is the best idea?”

“Lucy…” David spoke in a voice that clearly stated that he knew what she was thinking. “We had an entire month together before it became a ‘long distance thing.’ We really got to know each other. It’s not like he’s taking advantage of me or anything. I’m not an idiot.”

“I didn’t say…”

“But you thought it.”

“I did not think that you were an idiot.”

David sighed and stared down at his lap. Lucía instantly regretted letting skepticism get the best of her. “Can’t you just be happy for me?”

“Of course. I’m sorry. Of course, I’m happy for you. I want you to be happy. I want you to be happy, and to have a good relationship. That’s the only reason I worried. I love you to bits, you know?”

David looked up at the camera and smiled. “I love you to bits too. Trust me though, David is a good guy.”

“Okay, fine I… wait, what? David is a good guy. David. SILVI. You’re dating a guy with the same name as you!” Lucía laughed hysterically, and rolled over onto her back. “Oh, my gosh. What must that be like?? Just think when you actually need consent, if you know what I mean…” Lucía rolled back onto her stomach and looked into the camera. “In the throes of passion, you just scream out your own name. So weird.”

“Shut up.”

“OH… MMM… MEEEE.”

“Shut up.”

“Oh, come on. Don’t you think it’s weird?”

“No. He’s a great guy. I don’t care what he’s called. Besides I call him Villa.”

“You call him what?”

“Villa. It’s his last name.”

“Oh… weird. So, you call out his surname in the throes of passion then. ‘OH, SENOR VILLA.’”

“Not Sr. Villa. You’re an asshole. I’m done with this conversation.”

Lucía giggled. “Oh, come on. I have to tease you about your sexy summer romance. It’s my job as your ex-girlfriend, current best friend.”

“I’m firing you.”

“Nope.”

“Yep.”

“You can’t.”

“I can. You’re fired.”

“You would never.”

“I just did.”

“Shut up.”

“I really do have to go.”

“Why, do you have a hot long distance date? Are you going to do some naughty Skyping with Sr. Villa?”

“Shut. Up.”

“You can’t make me.”

“I will come all the way from Gran Canaria to make you.”

Lucía frowned. “Oh, I wish you would. Come from the islands, I mean. I miss you.”

David chuckled. “I love how you go from ridiculous to serious in a second. I miss you too. I’ll see about coming up for a weekend.”

“You’re welcome here anytime, that’s the word from my daddies.”

“I know. Tell them I say hi, and kiss Lulu for me.”

“Will do. Love you, Silvi.”

“Love you, Lucy. Besos!”

“Besos!” Lucía shouted, blowing kisses at the screen just before David disappeared.

Lucía closed her laptop, and hopped off her bed. She went to her closet and grabbed her pink laptop bag from its hanger. She put the computer inside, and placed it on her desk chair. The alarm clock on her bedside table told her it was just after eight. She was meant to open the bookshop in one hour. She rushed back to her closet and pulled out her “uniform.” Her dads made sure things were casual at work. Her uniform consisted of any pair of jeans she chose (today’s pair were dark super skinnies with a Chelsea patch on the left back pocket and a Real Madrid one on the right) and a “bookish” tee. She chose one that Papa had ordered specially made for her. In the center was a black silhouette of Charlotte Brontë’s profile, and in tiny font over the rest of the shirt was written the entirety of Jane Eyre, Lucía’s favorite classic. For the employees that didn’t have a closet filled with bookworm shirts, Stevie had specialty tees made bearing the name of the shop.

Lucía took a quick shower, dried her wavy locks and tied them up into a long ponytail that hung to the middle of her back, and quickly dressed for the day. In addition to her uniform, she tugged on a pair of bright pink Converse Chuck Taylors. She had a rainbow of Converse in her closet, and never wore the same pair two days in a row.

“Ah, bright pink day, huh?” Xabi observed when his daughter bounced into the kitchen. Her laptop bag hung on her right shoulder, and her Chelsea messenger bag was slung across her body.

Lucía raised up onto her toes a few times flexing the bright pink Chucks. “Yep. It feels like a bright pink day, doesn’t it?”

“Daddy’s more of bright pink person, but yeah, honey.” Xabi laughed. “I just finished up your lunch.”

“Papa, you know I can grab something at Mr. Guti’s place across the street? You don’t have to make me lunch every day.”

Stevie entered the room with Lourdes perched on his shoulders. “Oh, baby, please don’t stop your father from doing what gives him so much joy.” He pecked his daughter on the cheek. “Just take the love.”

“Of course, Daddy. Sorry, Papa.” Lucía kissed Xabi’s cheek and took the bento box from him. It was shaped and painted to look like a leatherbound novel. When she turned away from Xabi, she caught sight of her little sister for the first time. Lourdes was wearing Real Madrid’s new away kit - bright pink. “Ooh, look at you, Lulu! I love that kit.”

“It’s my faborite,” Lourdes says proudly as she thrust her hands in their air and cocked her head to the side.

Lucía laughed. “We match,” she pointed out, kicking her right leg into the air, and showing off her shoes.

Lourdes gasped. “Daddy!” She tugged on Stevie’s short hair to get his attention.

“Ouch, Lou! What?” Stevie laughed and playfully swatted her hands away from his hair.

“I need sommadoze shooooes!”

“Some of those shoes?” Stevie repeated, chuckling.

“Mmhmm!” Lourdes nodded enthusiastically. Just watching her made Xabi’s neck hurt, and he told her to stop.

“What if the best sister in the world bought them for you?” Lucía asked.

“I love you shister” was Lourdes’ only response which send her older sister into a fit of giggles.

“I love you too, Lulu. I gotta leave for work now. I’ll see you later. Kisses.” Lucía stood on her toes, and Lourdes leaned over to peck her lips. “Bye dads. Love you! See you later, Lou!” Lucía waved as she walked toward the kitchen doorway.

Lourdes waved, and said goodbye, but then wriggled down from Stevie’s shoulders. “Shister! Lucy!” She wiggled until Stevie finally placed her on the floor. She ran across the hardwood as fast as her little Adidas tennis shoes would carry her. “Shister!”

“Yes, Lou?” Lucía awkwardly kneeled down, trying to keep her laptop on her shoulder, and her bento box flat. Her messenger bag - loaded down with all of her personal things and the books she was currently reading dug into her hip. “What is it?”

“I’m a-comin to work with you today, okay?”

“Uh… I don’t know about that Lou. I’m not going straight to work. I’m stopping at my friend’s house. We’re walking to work together.”

“I’ll walk to work, uh, togedder too. Okay?” Lourdes nodded as if she thought that would convince her sister.

“No, Lou. Daddy and I will take you to the shop later today. Let Lucy go now. She’ll be late.”

Lourdes turned to Xabi, and planted her hands on her hips. “Um, exstuse me, Papa, but I am talking to my shister right now, okay?”

Lucía slapped her only free hand over her mouth to stifle her giggling. Xabi’s eyes widened, and his husband - who never seemed to be able to control himself around Lourdes - laughed out loud. Xabi narrowed his eyes and leered at Stevie from the corner of his eyes. “Steven.”

Stevie clapped a hand over his mouth and apologized. “Lou,” he tried, but giggled before he could continue scolding her.

“You’re useless,” Xabi said in a slightly joking tone. He crossed the room, and snatched his three-year-old from the floor. Lucía straighten up, and stood beside them. Xabi looked from Lourdes who was biologically Steven’s to Lucía. They both favored their biological fathers so much. It was like looking at miniature versions of themselves. Well, miniature female versions anyway. “You’re so much like your father,” he told Lourdes.

Lourdes nodded as if she fully comprehended. “I wanna go to work, okay?”

“Nope.”

“Yes!”

“No. You’re going shopping with Daddy and me.”

“Shoppeen?”

“Yes, shopping. You need things for preschool.”

“I needs sommadose shoes,” she reiterated.

“Maybe you do. Why don’t we go find some and then we’ll meet Lucy at work for lunch?”

“Hmm…” Lourdes tapped her chin whilst assessing if this plan met her standards. The adults ( “nearly adult” in Lucía’s case)  around her waited with bated breath for her decision. Finally, she nodded. “Okay, we do that.” Then, as if it had been her plan all along, she turned to her sister, and said, “Lucy, I will come to lunch with you, okay? I hafta do shopping, okay?”

“Okay,” Lucía replied with a chuckle. “See you guys later!”

“Have a good day, sweetheart!” Xabi called as she left the house.

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter follows some of the characters to work. Sergio brings the sass, and Poldi brings the dorky. Lourdes is back and even cuter than before! (Still mainly a chapter for introducing our characters and seeing a bit of their lives.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing, but the idea and the OFCs.

 

Marco was dressing for work when he heard his father shouting on the stairs. “Marco! Lucía is here! Are you decent?”

Marco zipped his black skinny jeans, and shouted, “Yeah. Come on up, Lucy!” He tugged on his black work shirt - a plain t-shirt with the coffee shop's logo printed onto it. It wasn’t glamorous, but it was comfortable.

“Thanks, John,” Lucía said with a smile.

“No problem. Can Frank or I get anything for you? Have you eaten breakfast?”

“Oh, yes. It was Pancake Day at my house. I don’t need anything, but you could put my bento box in your refrigerator. My Papa made a really lovely salad for me. I would hate for it to wilt.”

John took the bento box from her, and said, “Sure thing. How are your parents?”

“They’re doing really well, thank you. Daddy actually called while I was walking over. He wanted me to extend an invitation for dinner to you and Frank.”

“Oh!” John smiled happily. “Tonight?”

“No. He didn’t think you would be available on such short notice. How’s Friday night?”

“Sounds perfect. I’ll give him a call.” John started off toward the kitchen.

Lucía began to ascend the staircase. “You may have to leave a message,” she warned him. “They’re out shopping with Lou.”

“I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you, sweetie.”

“You’re welcome.” When Lucía was sure that her conversation with John was finished, she took the rest of the steps two at a time.

“I heard my dad talking your ear off,” Marco said as soon as Lucía entered his bedroom.

“He was not. You’re too hard on your dads sometimes.” Lucía went straight to his bed. Marco’s fat grey cat liked to curl up on the end of it. Lucía adored animals, but had a special love for cats. She had a cat when she was younger, but he was run over by a car and she had never had the heart to replace him. Eden wanted a dog, but her fathers always told him that Lulu was too little for them to get a dog. Maybe this year. For now, Lucía poured all of her love into her friend’s pets - most of all Marco’s. “Hey, Whiskers,” she said, scratching the cat’s head and kissing his soft fur. Whiskers always smelled like freshly washed cotton. That was one of Lucía’s favorite smells.

“I am not,” Marco argued as he walked into the bathroom and closed the door behind him. Lucía knew he would be in there for the next fifteen minutes fixing his precious hair. She loved to tease him about the amount of time he spent on his hair and then staring at his reflection in the mirror on the back of the bathroom door. Secretly though, she found him and his perfectly coiffed hair to be rather sexy. “What time is it?”

“Half past eight!” Lucía dumped her bags onto Marco’s bed, and curled up beside Whiskers. She stroked his fur and he began to purr. He rolled onto his back with his paws in the air, begging for a belly rub. They went through this every day that Lucía paid Marco a visit. She obliged him, rubbing the silky soft fur of the cat’s tummy. His purring grew louder.

“I can hear him all the way in here!” Marco shouted. “I swear that cat loves you more than any of us here. You should adopt him.”

Lucía laughed. “I don’t think that’s true. He loves you guys.”

“He hates Dad.”

“He does not. He’s just hornery, aren’t you, Whiskers?” Whiskers meowed loudly in response. “See.”

Marco laughed loudly. A moment later, he emerged from the bathroom. His hair looked good, but not as good as it could if he had spent his usual fifteen minutes on it.

Whiskers jumped at the sound of the door opening and turned onto his stomach. Lucía resumed stroking her hand down his back. “I didn’t expect to see you for ten more minutes,” she admitted.

“I ran out of hair gel, so it’s mostly held together with spray. I need to shop today after work. Does it look okay?”

“You look gorgeous, but…” Lucía jumped up from the bed. “If you don’t believe me, you could always hop on Skype and ask your lover boy in Germany!”

“No.”

“Marco!” Lucía whined and pouted out her bottom lip. “When are you finally going to let me see him?”

“When I’m sure that you’re not going to call him something like my 'lover boy' the second you see him, or say something inappropriate, or ask him stupid questions. So… never.”

“Rude.”

“Well, I know your game.”

“You’re mean, Marco.”

“No.”

“Yes. Whiskers agrees with me, so I win.”

“You’re so mature. I can’t even.”

“Shut up…” Lucía paused for a moment. “Marco, what’s the German word for asshole?”

“I’m not teaching you that, so you can turn around and use it on me.”

“Rude.”

“How is that...?!” Marco cut off and laughed. “I love you. You’re so dumb.”

“Oh, yeah, I really feel the love with that last sentence.” Lucía grabbed her phone, and pecked away at the screen for a few moments. “Arschloch.”

Marco gasped. “Ruuude!!”

Lucía giggled. “Did I say it right? Google says that’s asshole.”

“It is, but no you didn’t. Your German pronunciation is terrible.”

“Yeah, well, your German personality is terrible, so shut up.”

Marco shook his head, but grinned. “We should leave for work.”

“Okay. Will you carry my bag for me?”

“The laptop or the bricks?”

“They’re books, not bricks.”

“You could have fooled me with the weight! What’s in there this time anyway?”

“The books I’m currently reading.”

“How many?”

“Three.”

“Lucy, how can you read three books at a time?”

“I’m talented.” She grinned and did a goofy little curtsy. Marco laughed at her. “I’ve got three different genres going right now: Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe for my YA fix, The Shining - horror, and Afterschool Charisma, Volume 6 - manga.”

“You’ve read the first one like four times already.”

“So.”

“You’re a dork.”

“A proud one.” She grinned. “So, will you carry it for me?”

“Yes, of course.” Marco grabbed his hoodie, and slipped it on before he picked up the heavy bag for her.

“It’s August. It’s hot. Why do wear that thing?”

“Because I look damn good in it.” Marco winked at her.

She rolled her eyes. He was right, but she wasn’t about to tell him that. She gave Whiskers one last kiss on the head, grabbed her laptop bag, and started out of the room. “Come on, arschloch. We don’t want to be late.”

“Stop calling me that!” Marco yelled, rushing out after her. Her messenger back banged against his hip. “This bag is killing me!”

“You need me to carry it?”

Marco shook his head. “I got it.”

The two friends trooped into the kitchen to retrieve Lucía’s bento box. After taking it, they said their goodbyes to Marco’s parents, and left the house to walk to work.

“We should sneak around the Torres house, and see if Cheekbones is out by his pool,” Lucía suggested as they walked along the sidewalk in front of Fernando’s house.

Marco laughed. “Does Fernando know you call him that?”

“I believe I have said it to his face on more than one occasion, yes.”

“You’re crazy.”

“I know. It’s such fun.”

They passed Fernando’s house without snooping, and Marco was glad. As much as he would have liked to see Fernando sunning himself, he would have been mortified in the event that they had been caught. Since they couldn’t see what was happening behind Fernando’s house, Lucía decided to create the scene for them. There were so many pros and cons to being best friends with a writer with a vivid imagination.

One of the pros: “Fernando is lying back there on the pool deck, stretched out with his arms crossed behind his head - the rays of sun dancing on those rock hard abs… He’s just gotten out of the pool, so the droplets of water rolling down his delicious thighs sparkle in the sunlight,” Lucía rambled. “Better yet, maybe there’s a half naked dripping wet Sergio between his legs. Unf. Wow.”

One of the cons to being best friends with a wildly imaginative writer is going to work horny and lusting after your neighbors.

~~~~

Oscar swore as he smashed his finger down on the button that would buzz Cesc’s apartment. “Come on!” His baby girl, Júlia, wailed from her place in her baby carrier. He shook it gently to rock her, and shushed her. “Shh, shh… it’s okay, Júlia.”

“Sorry, I was on the toilet!” Cesc’s voice came crackling over the intercom. The buzzer above the door sounded, and the lock clicked open.

Oscar kicked the door open, and practically ran through. Cesc’s apartment was on the ground floor - third down on the right. Oscar pounded on the door. “Cesc!”

Cesc jerked the door open. “I’m right here, dude. Calm down.”

“Sorry, but I’m running late for work. I couldn’t find the thing to clean her nose with.”

“We would probably survive the day without her nose picker,” Cesc said, taking the baby carrier from Oscar. He placed it on the floor, and pulled Júlia out of it. “We don’t need a nose picker, do we?” he asked her in his baby talk voice.

“It’s not called a nose picker though…” Oscar placed Júlia’s diaper bag on the floor. “It doesn’t matter. I gotta go. I have lunch at one, so I’ll be here for an hour. Then I have to go back to work for three hours. Is that okay?”

“It’s okay with me. Why are working three extra hours?”

“Because I had to call off Thursday. She has an appointment to see the doctor.”

“Is she sick?”

“No. It’s a check up. I really gotta go.” Oscar kissed his daughter on the head. “See you later, sweetie. Thanks, Cesc.”

“Sure, sure.” Cesc held up the baby’s hand and made her wave goodbye at Oscar. “Bye, papi,” he said in his baby talk voice.

Oscar chuckled. Cesc was a goof, but a good babysitter. He had been watching Júlia since Oscar began working at Lucy’s Bookshelf at the beginning of summer. He called out a final farewell, and rushed out of the building. Cesc’s apartment was a mere two blocks from the bookstore and four blocks from his house.  Oscar felt foolish driving the short distance. It was a waste of petrol and certainly not doing any good for the environment, but lugging a baby carrier holding a twenty pound baby and a heavy diaper bag several blocks was no good for his well-being. Sorry, Environment, you’re taking one for the team.

Lucía was just unlocking the door when Oscar drove his old grey four-door car into the parking lot. She smiled and waved. He breathed a sigh of relief. He knew his bosses were rather lenient and understanding, but he didn’t want to take advantage of their generosity by being late to work.

“I bought you a coffee and a pastry,” Lucía announced as soon as Oscar stepped over the threshold and into her shop. Well, to say it was “her” shop wouldn’t quite be accurate. She wouldn’t take over ownership for another year. Her fathers bought the shop when she turned seven years old with the intention of handing ownership over to her when she turned eighteen. Her eighteenth birthday would not arrive until the July after she graduated high school.

Oscar blushed. Lucía was always buying coffee and pastries for him at breakfast and sandwiches for lunch. He felt like a charity case. He told her, as he always did, “You didn’t have to do that.” He hoped that she would eventually assume that he shared breakfast with his baby. The truth was that he didn’t have enough money to eat three meals a day, every day. His parents had never forgiven him for having a child at such a young age with a girl who wanted nothing to do with the baby. They made it very clear to him that they would not be responsible for anything besides lodging for him and the baby, and when he turned eighteen they would no longer provide that either.

“I like bringing things in for you, and the other employees too. You don’t think I do it just for you, do you?” She had the sneaking suspicion that Oscar felt like a charity case. Initially, he was, but she soon started providing for all of her employees/friends in the hope that he wouldn’t feel bad. “I’ve recently been given the title of manager, you know? I need to make a good impression on my employees.” She grinned, hoping he would lighten up.

Oscar nodded, and rounded the big counter that served as the main check-out station. There was another smaller station in the children’s area at the back of the shop, so that parents could check out while their children read or played nearby. Oscar liked to work the children’s check-out. There was nothing that made him happier than seeing a child excited to be receiving new books. He loved to read. He read to Júlia as often as he could. He couldn’t afford to buy her brand new books, so most of hers came from the local library’s book sale where like-new books cost one euro rather than fifteen or twenty.

“Everything alright, Oscar?” Lucía asked, arching her brow at him. She watched him as he pulled his nametag out of the staff drawer beneath the cash register. “How’s Miss Júlia?”

“Oh, she’s good. We’re good.” He clipped his nametag onto his t-shirt above the unique bookshop logo. He had always like the way the “L” was formed by the profile of a little girl sitting with her legs jutting out in front of her, and a book on her lap. He wanted to ask Lucía if the little girl was her, but he had never had the courage. Maybe that was a personal thing. Although, if it was so personal why was it being displayed on a giant sign on top of a building? “How are you?”

“Wonderful,” she said with a smile. “Ready to start the day. How many little ones do you think we’ll have today?”

“Hopefully tons. Am I working in the children’s section today?”

Lucía nodded. “I’ll let you know if I need help at the front. Lukas will be here at noon when I take my lunch break. Is that okay with you, or would you like to take yours first?”

“I told Cesc I’d be by at one to eat with Júlia.”

“Sounds good. Head on back there, and be sure that everything is as it should be, will you?” The bell above the door dinged, and captured Lucía’s attention. Oscar disappeared when she started to greet the older man that walked through the door.

“Can you help me find the new James Patterson novel?” The old man was asking as Oscar entered the colorful world of the children’s area. Children were so much more fun than adults. While no section in the store was what one might term “stuffy,” none was quite as exciting as the children’s area. The walls were painted with bright murals from famous and beloved children’s books. Harry Potter flew on his broomstick over the special display containing his books. The store sold Harry Potter books in every format you could imagine - paperback, hardcover, CD, books on mp3 players, and even special gift cards used to purchase the eBook versions. This may have been because the series was wildly popular, but everyone assumed it was because Lucía was a Potterhead.

The Potter section captivated many a customer, but the picture book section was Oscar’s favorite. It was rather large, and the wall above was painted with the likenesses of beloved characters such as: The Cat in the Hat, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Ferdinand, the Bull from “The Story of Ferdinand”, Curious George, The Berenstain Bears, and several others. It was in this area that Lucía’s father sat in a rocking chair and read to the children during “Story Time” every Saturday morning, and afternoon. Oscar brought Júlia to every story time. At first, he did it for his daughter’s benefit, but soon he came for his own pleasure as well. Xabi had the most beautiful Basque accent, one of the most beautiful accents Oscar had ever heard. He was ashamed to admit that he had more than a little crush on the older man.

When Lucía finished up with the Patterson reader, she ventured back to check on Oscar. “Everything going okay?” she asked, startling Oscar who was straightening a copy of “Harold and the Purple Crayon” whilst daydreaming about Xabi’s voice.

He jumped and turned toward her. “Uh, yeah… just some minor straightening.”

“Thank you!” As Lucía walked back to the front of the store, she rolled her eyes. Straightening things was Poldi’s job, and he obviously wasn’t doing it. Big shock. If she didn’t adore his stupid face, she would probably fire him… or, well, make her dad do it. Even with the title of 'manager', she wasn’t allowed to fire or hire anyone.

~~~~

“Sorry, bro. We’re not hiring,” Sergio explained when Bastian approached the counter to pay for the meal he had just shared with his boyfriend.

“I wasn’t going to ask about a job. I was just paying for our lunch,” snapped Bastian.

“Don’t get snappy. You have asked every time you’ve come in for the past week. The answer is still no.”

“I need a job.”

“I know. Otherwise, who will pay for your bottomless pit of a boyfriend to eat lunch? Who needs to eat two sandwiches and three bags of crisps, really? This is a coffee shop, by the way. You’re eating us out of the very little food we actually have.”

“Just swipe the card, and stop bitching or we’re take our business elsewhere.”

“No one else would put up with you idiots.”

Bastian ignored him. “Do you know if anyone is hiring?”

“I am gainfully employed,” Sergio said, swiping the card, and tapping on the keyboard. “Why would I need to know about available jobs?”

“You’re only employed, because your daddy owns this place.”

“What’s your point? I’m still employed.”

“I can call Lucía to see if she’s hiring,” Marco said in German. He handed over a coffee to a waiting customer and then turned to Bastian.

“Lukas is headed over there, but sure give her a call.”

“She won’t hire you,” Lukas said, approaching his boyfriend behind, and wrapping his arms around his waist.

“Why not? She hired you.”

“Her dad hired me, but she knows I’d never get any work done if we both worked there.”

“We could work different days. I need a job.”

“What happened to your job at the pet groomer anyway?” Sergio asked, handing over Bastian’s card and receipt.

“Dude, washing the bums of animals is gross. I quit.”

“You’re dumb.” Sergio shook his head.

“Yeah, Lu, are you hiring?” Bastian ignored Sergio and turned his attention to Marco who apparently had Lucía on the line. Marco was silent for a few moments while he waited for Lucía to reply. “She might be,” he finally said to Bastian.

“Awesome! Tell her I’ll be right over with Lukas.”

Marco conveyed the message, and hung up the phone. “She groaned when I told her, so I’m not sure that’s a good sign. Sorry.”

“Told you she wouldn’t want to hire you,” Lukas said, releasing his hold on his boyfriend, and starting toward the exit. “See you, Marco, Sergio!”

“Later,” Marco called.

“Good riddance,” Sergio added with a chuckle.

“Yeah, yeah,” Bastian waved and hurried after Lukas.

 

“I can’t remember the author’s name, but the title had a number in it.” Lukas snickered when he walked into the store just in time to hear a customer speaking to Lucía. He knew these types were Lucía’s least favorite customers.

“A number?” Lucía was using her sickeningly sweet voice, the one reserved for the times when was just about to crack and release all of her rage onto humanity.

“Twenty? Or, or maybe thirty?” The customer scratched his chin. “It’s a mystery novel. There’s a series of them.”

“Takedown Twenty,” Bastian suggested.

“That’s it!” The customer practically shouted. “Thank you!”

Bastian nodded. “Mystery section is in the back. The author is Janet Evanovich.”

The customer thanked Bastian once more, and trooped off to find his book. Lucía narrowed her eyes at Bastian. “How do you know Janet Evanovich books?”

“My mom reads them.”

Lucía rolled her eyes, but thanked him. “Lukas, your shift starts in three minutes. I’m leaving for lunch, so you need to get rid of Bastian. I need you to actually work.”

“Customers really trying your patience today?” Lukas asked. He rounded the counter, and started to massage her shoulders.

Lucía closed her eyes and groaned. “I love this place, and this job, but seriously. It has a number in it. I don’t know, but the cover is blue. Poldi, use your stupid face to tell me how I’m supposed to answer questions like that?”

Lukas laughed and worked on the knot of tension between her shoulder blades. “Don’t worry about it. Go to lunch. I can cover this.” He pecked the back of her head and rubbed her shoulders before gently nudging her toward the back.

“Are you sure? Oscar is in the back. You know my number. I’ll be with my dad if it is a real emergency. Just call.”

“We’ll be fine.”

“Oh, Bastian, Marco said you were looking for a job… I’m not sure we’re hiring right now.”

“I can work only days Lukas doesn’t, or opposite times.”

Lucía sighed. “I don’t know. Poldi, give him an application from the drawer. I’ll pass it on to my dad.”

“Thanks, Lucy!” Bastian smiled. Lukas pulled the form from the drawer and handed it over. “Thanks, babe. I’ll pick you up later.” Lukas kissed him quickly and then shooed him away. He waved and ran out the front door.

“You guys are so cute you make me want to puke.” Lucía made a sick noise.

Lukas grinned his big stupid grin, and said, “I know. Please hire him. His parents are starting to get onto him about not having a job.”

“I can’t guarantee anything though. We’re hiring, but I think my parents want to hire someone older, because school is coming up. They need someone who can work during school hours.”

“Luce, Basti isn’t in school anymore. He’s a year older than us, remember?”

“He’s not going to university?”

“He’s only going part-time, all night courses, and they don’t begin until October.”

“Hmm… I can put in a good word with my dad then.”

Lukas was about to speak when the Evanovich customer approached the counter. He had located the mystery book, and was ready to purchase it. Lukas happily rang it up, and took his money.

“You’re sure you’re okay here with just Oscar?” Lucía asked after the customer had gone.

“Yeah, I’m sure. If I need anything, I’ll call. Where are you going anyway? Out with Marco?”

“Partly. I’m going to eat lunch with my dads for about a half hour and then hitting the mall with Marco.”

“The mall? Are you two going to get your nails done and shop for dresses?”

“Yes.” Lucía rolled her eyes, and disappeared into the back. “The back,” as everyone referred to it, was comprised of four rooms. The room she walked into was the break room complete with a small kitchenette.. Beyond it was the manager’s office, the bathroom, and the largest of the rooms: the storage facility.

Lucía walked into the manager’s office to retrieve her purse from the desk. Her cellphone was on the desk next to the computer. She grabbed it to check the messages. She had two new texts - one from each of her dads. The one from Xabi read, “Where are we having lunch, sweetheart?”

Lucía opened the text from Stevie without responding to Xabi. His text read, “adgiw.kdfsakl   gkwii. (That’s Lulu’s way of asking where we’re eating lunch. x)”

Lucía laughed and opened a new text message, so that she could respond to both parents in one go. She had barely gotten the first two words typed before she heard her little sister’s voice. “SHISTER!” Lourdes’ shouting grew nearer. “SHISTER, HEY! I GOTTED NEW SHOOOOOOES!”

Lucía dropped her phone into her bag, and walked out of the office. Lourdes ran toward her, and jumped at her. Lucía caught her and picked her up. “Hey, you!”

“Lucy!” Lourdes kissed her cheek. “Daddy and Papa bringded me here to see you, okay? LOOK SEE MY SHOOOES!”

“Oooh, look at you!.” Lourdes had a pair of bright pink Chuck Taylor’s on her feet. They were identical to Lucía’s, but somehow the size made them infinitely cuter. “I love them!”

“Me too! I want you, uh, read a book to me, okay?”

“Right now? I thought we were going to have lunch.”

“My tummy is hun’ry,” Lourdes said with a nod.

“My tummy is hungry too, so maybe we should read later and eat now.”

“Shister, we will read lader on, okay? We are hun’ry in our tummies now.”

“Oh, okay. Yeah, good thinking there.”

“I know.”

Lucía laughed. “Is Eden here too?”

Lourdes shook her head wildly, sending her blond locks dancing around her sweet face. Lucía took that to mean no.

“Where is he?”

“I dunno, okay?”

“Okay. Let’s go ask Papa.”

When Lucía emerged from the back, she glanced around to find her fathers. Stevie was standing behind the counter having a chat with Lukas, but Xabi was nowhere to be seen. “DADDY!” Lourdes announced their presence.

Stevie spun away from Lukas with a smile on his face. “Let’s use our inside voices, Lou,” he said, taking her when she tried to fly out of Lucía’s arms.

“My insigh boice likes to whipser like this, Daddy,” Lourdes said in a loud whisper.

“Good. I like the way your inside voice likes to whisper.”

Lucía smiled when her father kissed her younger sister and then her on the forehead. “Where’s Papa? Are we still having lunch?”

“He’s in the children’s area picking out a book for Lou. Where do you want to go for lunch?”

“How about Scoops? They have yummy sandwiches, and of course, the best ice cream for dessert. More importantly, it’s in the mall, and I’m supposed to meet Marco there at half past.”

“My tummy want ice cream,” Lourdes said, patting her stomach.

Stevie nodded. “After you eat a sandwich.”

Xabi approached the front counter with two books in his hand. Lucía immediately recognized the larger of the two as The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt. Xabi had read it at a story time the previous year when it was newly published. When Xabi placed the books on the counter, Lucía identified the smaller one as Pinkalicious. The larger book was meant to be read to the child by the parent; the small one from child to parent.

“Dad, Lou can’t read.”

“We’re going to work on it.”

“Dad, she’s three.”

“She’s very bright,” Xabi argued.

Lucía chuckled. “Okay, okay. You’re right. She is bright.”

Lukas rang up the books with the family discount and Xabi paid. “Alright, let’s go eat.”

“Will Eden join us?” Lucía hadn’t seen her brother since he disappeared after their pancake breakfast. He had been disappearing a lot lately. She was concerned. His boyfriend had moved away at the start of the summer, and Eden hadn’t quite been himself since.

“I’m afraid not. He’s taking a day trip to Valencia with Fernando and Sergio. I believe Sergio is just off work, and they're leaving.”

“Lucky,” Lucía scoffed.

“Speaking of Sergio,” Stevie piped up as they left the bookshop. “Raúl would like to speak to you.”

“Why? School doesn’t start until next week.”

“He needs your help with something. John told me when he phoned earlier to RSVP about dinner this weekend. Apparently, he spoke with Raúl about it this morning.” Stevie pat his daughter on the back. “He’s expecting you to pay him a visit tomorrow morning.”

Lucía climbed into the car, sitting next to Lourdes’ special car seat. “Will Sergio be there? I’ll feel awkward if he’s not there.”

“I don’t know, sweetie. It won’t be awkward, I’m sure.”

“Dad… he’s the principal at my school. I don’t want to go to his house and meet with him alone.” Raúl was far too hot for that.

“Papa can accompany you, if you like. I have a meeting with my publisher in the morning.”

Lucía shook her head, “no.”

“It’s just about a new student,” Xabi told her to ease her worrying. “John said Raúl would explain everything else.”

The topic died off at that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoyed this second chapter. I'm sorry that it took so long to get it posted! I really appreciate all of the kudos and comments you left for the first chapter, and I would appreciate it if you let me know what you think of this second one as well. Thanks so much, guys! You're all the best! <3


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In this one, we're still getting to know some of the characters we've seen in previous chapter including a more in-depth look at Sergio's life. Also, a couple of new cuties make an appearance! (and there's just a touch of drama)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing, but the idea and the OCs.
> 
> Sorry for the delay in posting this chapter. Life has been crazy lately!

Chapter Three

“I could come with,” Marco offered when Lucía told him about the meeting with their principal in the morning. She and Marco were eating lunch at Scoops with her family. Xabi and Stevie sat at the kiddie table with Lourdes.

“I think having a chaperone would make things even more awkward. I don’t know why my dads don’t understand how awkward this meeting could be. They have to know how hot Raul is.”

“I’m sure they do, but they’re old dudes. They probably don’t have awkward moments.”

“First, my dads aren’t actually that old. Don’t make them sound like my grandfathers. Second, they absolutely have awkward moments. Actually, one of them involves Raul. Daddy went out to get the bins the other morning, but he was too lazy to get his trousers on. Raul came out just in time to catch him in his boxers. He was mortified. It was hilarious.”

Marco laughed, and took a bite of his sandwich. “Explain it to him that way then. Tell him you’ll feel that awkward if he sends you over there by yourself.”

“I already tried to explain it though. He wanted nothing to do with my complaints. I just hope Sergio will be there.”

“Oh, yeah, I forgot for a second that he was Raul’s son.”

Lucia nodded. “He definitely is, but he’s in Valencia right now though.”

“Valencia? Why?”

“I have no idea. My dads just told me that Eden was with him and Fernando in Valencia. I think Sergio’s family has a beach house there.”

“Well, wasn’t it nice of them to invite us along to the beach?”

“We have jobs.”

“They do too.” Marco ate the last bite of his sandwich, and balled up the paper wrapper.

“But they’re off right now. We have to be back in…” Lucia pulled her phone out of the pocket of her jeans. “Forty minutes.”

“Fair enough. Hey, if we have forty minutes, we should go shopping.”

Lucia quickly finished her sandwich, and downed the last of her juice. “Let me just tell my dads and Lulu.”

Marco nodded. “I’ll throw out our rubbish. Meet me outside.” “Outside” was one of the main corridors in the mall. Scoops was just one of the many food shops in the giant mall.

Lucia walked over to the table her parents and Lourdes were sharing in the corner of the room. Lourdes was happily munching on apple slices, and cubes of cheese. “Shister! I gots cheese!”

“I see that. It looks yummy!”

“It is! Manzana.” She held a slice of apple up to Lucia, showing off or possibly offering, her apple to her sister.

“Ooh, that’s yummy too. You eat your lunch, and maybe Papa and Daddy will buy you some ice cream.”

“Ice cream! Papa said I could has that when I done.”

Lucia smiled, and patted Lourdes on the head. “I’m going shopping with Marco. Is that okay with you guys?”

“It seems you’ve made up your mind even if it isn’t okay with us,” Xabi replied with a smile.

“Not at all, Papa. If you say you’d rather I didn’t go, I won’t.”

“Of course, you can go,” Stevie interjected. “Your Papa is just being a pain.”

“Not Papa, never,” Lucia said with a laugh. Xabi made a face, but she kissed his cheek, and the frown disappeared. She passed out kisses to Stevie and Lourdes, and then made her way out to find Marco.

Marco was standing in the middle of the corridor at a stand selling sunglasses. He had a huge pair of bright blue square-framed sunglasses on his face when Lucia stepped up beside him. “Those are a no,” she told him. “Your face is too small.”

“Is that an insult?”

“How could that be an insult, honey?”

Marco took the glasses off, and placed them back on the rack. He shrugged his shoulders. “Did you tell your dads we were leaving?”

“Yes, I told them. Where do you want to go?”

“I need some hair products, remember?” He fluffed his hair as a reminder.

“To the salon products store then. Unless you want to try on more sunglasses.”

Marco shook his head. “Nah. I don’t really need them. I was just wasting time waiting for you to come out.”

Lucia looped her arm through his, and they started walking down the corridor. “It’s on the second level, right?”

“Yeah, at the end by the big department store where old ladies shop for old clothes.”

Lucia laughed loudly. “You want to buy some old lady clothes while we’re down there?”

“Yeah, I think I need a wardrobe change.”

“Well, I do too, but I don’t think old lady clothes are the answer to your problems, dear.”

“What do you mean you do too?? You think I need a wardrobe change?”

“I tell you almost every day that you need to stop wearing hoodies when it’s the middle of summer. That’s what I mean when I say you need a change.”

Marco frowned. “I like my hoodie.”

Lucia smiled. “Well, then you should wear it, Marco. I mean… I think it’s crazy, and I would never do it, because it’s hot outside, but if you enjoy wearing it then do it. You do look hot in it.” She laughed, because she wanted him to think she was joking when she totally wasn’t joking.

“I know you’re joking, but Mario said the same thing, and he doesn’t joke about my hotness, so…”

“Omg. Loverboy likes your hoodies!! Wait, are you only wearing it, because Loverboy likes it? Marco, honey, girls shouldn’t dress to please the men in their lives.”

“This girl dresses for no one, but herself.” Marco puffed his chest out like a proud rooster. Lucia laughed. He deflated after a moment, and asked, “Wait, why am I referring to myself as a girl?”

Lucia laughed even louder. “Marco, I love you.”

“More than what?”

“Hmm… pickles.”

“Pickles? Okay, that’s a lot. Wow. I love you too.”

“More than what?”

“Hmm… sunshine.”

“Wow, and you’re always outside in the sunshine. I am really feeling the love.”

Marco laughed, and pulled her closer. “You should always.”

“I do.” Lucia glanced around as they walked through the corridor. There were shops all around. When she looked to the right, she spotted Sparkles, a store that sells everything from cute jewelry to journals with the latest icons in pop culture on the covers. “Ooh! Can we stop at Sparkles?” she begged Marco. He hadn’t even opened his mouth, and she was already dragging him toward the storefront.

“I guess we can. We’re halfway there already,” he said with a laugh.

Lucia trotted through the door and headed straight for the rainbow section of the store. Marco trailed close behind her. “I think I need some rainbow shoelaces,” she said, pulling some down from the display.

“Don’t you have three pairs already?”

“Yes, and they are currently occupied by three different pairs of Chucks.”

“You have too many Chucks.”

“There is no such thing as ‘too many Chucks,’ Marco.”

“Hey, ladies!”

Marco and Lucia turned simultaneously at the sound of a voice behind them. “Why is everyone referring to me as a woman today?” Marco mumbled.

“Javi, hey!” Lucia smiled. “Javi” was Javier Hernandez, their friend from school. He stood just a little taller than Lucia, had beautiful tan skin, and dressed “colorfully,” for lack of a better term. Today, he wore bright pink skinny jeans, and a white t-shirt with the word, “Sparkles” in glitter rainbow font across the chest. His shoes were rainbow-striped Toms. While Lucia had always called him Javi, most people called him by his nickname, Chicharito. “I didn’t know you were working today,” she said, though the truth was that she really had no idea what days he worked.

“Yep! I get off in an hour though. I’m working a short shift. Why aren’t you guys working? Ooh, those are cute!” He ran his fingers over the shoelaces in Lucia’s hand.

“We’re on our lunch break,” Marco explained.

“Thank you,” Lucia said. “I think I’ll buy them.”

“You totally should! I bet they would look really cute with your…” Javier paused, and glanced down at her shoes. “Omg!” he squealed. “Your shoes are so cute!”

Lucia grinned and looked down as if she had forgotten what her shoes looked like. “Thank you! I love them so much! My little sister just got a matching pair today. They’re even cuter when they’re tiny!”

“Omg! So cute!” Javier clapped his hands, and giggled.

Marco rolled his eyes. He could only take so much of the giggling and the squealing before Javier started to wear on his patience. “Luce, I need to run to the salon. We’re running low on time. Meet me there.”

“Oh, sure, sorry, Marco. I’ll be right there. Just let me buy these.” Marco nodded, and headed for the door. Lucia turned to Javier. “Javi, can you ring these up for me?”

“Of course! We’re having a sale on accessories, by the way. By one, and you get one half price! Wanna buy something else? Some sunglasses maybe?”

“Yes, actually. I’ll buy some sunglasses for Marco, I think. Which ones would you recommend?”

“For Marco? Oh, honey. I wouldn’t recommend anything here for Marco, to be honest.” He whispered as if he thought perhaps his boss was spying on him. Surely, he or she would hate to hear him putting down the very products he had been hired to sell. “Marco needs something expensive like Gucci or Versace. Michael Kors, at the very least. That boy has a perfect face.” He shook his head and added in a hushed voice, “Lucky bitch.”

Lucia laughed. “Still, I’m not shopping for Gucci today. So, what do you recommend that I can buy here?”

Javier showed her to a round shelf filled with sunglasses, and showed her a pair of sleek black rectangular-framed ones. “These will look good on him. Anything would look good on him.”

“I hope you’re talking about me!”

Javier practically threw the sunglasses as Lucia, and hopped around her. “Baby!” he shouted, grabbing the boy who just entered the store. Lucia immediately recognized him as James Rodriguez, a boy in the grade below theirs. He was some kind of math genius. He had taken advanced math with her the previous year. He was smaller than his boyfriend with a cute little baby face that always had the widest of smiles when Javier was around. They were one of the cutest couples in school.

“What are you doing here?” Javier asked, kissing his small boyfriend on the lips.

“I thought we were having lunch together.”

“After I get off work.”

“I thought you were off now.”

He shook his head. “I won’t be off for another hour.”

James pouted. “I have a lunch break now. I got mixed up.”

“I’m sorry, baby. I’ll come by the pet adoption center after work.” James worked in the mall’s pet adoption center along with Cesc. While James worked weekdays (evenings during the school year), Cesc worked long days on the weekend. Lucia often envied their jobs. Who wouldn’t love playing with puppies and kittens all day until someone adopted them?

“Javi, I don’t want to interrupt, but would you mind ringing these things up? I need to meet up with Marco.”

“Oh, sure. Sorry, Lucy.” Javier kissed James on the cheek, and quickly moved behind the register. Lucia placed her items on the counter.

James smiled at her, and said, “Hey, Lucy. How are you?”

“Great, James. Thanks! How are you? How are the puppies?”

James chuckled. “The puppies are great, of course, and I’m good.”

“There you go, Lucy.” Javier handed her a bag with her items inside and recited the cost to her. She paid with her bank card, said goodbye to the adorable couple, and walked swiftly out of the store.

When she reached the salon, Marco was walking out with a large bag clutched in his hand. His hair looked perfectly coiffed. “You used it already,” she said in disbelief.

Marco blushed. “Yes… the guy who sold it to me told me I would look really cute if I had some product in my hair, and then he led me a mirror, and well he kind of did this.”

“Oh, my gosh, Marco. You were flirting with a guy over hair gel?”

“What?! He was cute! I couldn’t help it.”

“What about Loverboy?”

“Luce, geez. It was innocent flirting!”

“I’m just teasing you, Marco. I bought something for you!”

“For me? Please say you didn’t buy the rainbow shoelaces for me. They don’t go with my shoes, honey.”

“The shoelaces are for me.” Lucia opened the Sparkles bag, and withdrew Marco’s sunglasses. “Do you like them?” she asked, showing them off. “Javi helped me pick them out.”

“Sunglasses,” Marco said with a laugh. “Oh, Luce. You didn’t have to do that, but I really like them.”

“I hoped you would. Javi thought they would look good on you.”

Marco pulled the tags off, and slid the sunglasses onto his face. “From what I’ve heard around school, Javi would think anything looked good on me.”

“Oh, you know about that?”

He nodded. “I had only heard rumours until now, so thanks for confirming.”

“I wonder what he sees in you. His boyfriend is so adorable.”

“Gee, thanks, Luce.”

“I just mean, like, why is he looking elsewhere?”

“Luce, he finds me attractive. He’s not looking to have a sordid affair. Chill. You’ve been reading too much drama fanfiction.”

“That is probably accurate. I read this crazy one the other night where two couples were actually having affairs with each other’s spouses.”

“Footballers?”

“Yes.”

“Did they end up in a foursome by the end?”

“It’s not finished yet, but I don’t think polyamory is in their future. I think they’ll end up with the ones they’re cheating with.”

“And live happily ever after?”

“Probably not. One of the couples has kids.”

“Is it your OTP? The guys where one lives in England still, but the other one moved to Spain or Germany, or something?”

“He moved to Spain, and Germany actually, and no. I could never read something where those two break up. It would crush my soul. They are soulmates, together forever.”

“Or apart, because one of them is…”

“Marco, stop speaking! My heart is aching.” Lucia clutched her heart dramatically.

Marco laughed. “You’re crazy,” he said, shaking his head. “We have like twenty-five minutes before we have to be back at work. Do you want to shop some more?”

“Of course. Have you forgotten to whom you are speaking, Marco?”

“To whom I am speaking,” Marco mocked. “No one actually talks like that, Luce.”

“I just did though. So someone does, obviously. Me.”

“Where are we going? Showeth me the way.”

“You’re an idiot.” Lucia rolled her eyes. “I need new boots. Let’s go to _Sports & Stuff_.”

“ _Sports & Stuff_ is my favorite store in the mall. You know why?”

“Because the guy that works there looks like an adorable alpaca?”

Marco laughed. “No! The name. It’s just so stupid. ‘Sports and Stuff.’ I love it. Who names their store something ‘and stuff.’ It’s hilarious.”

“Or you’re easily amused, but sure.”

“Shut up.” They walked along in silence toward the other end of the second level corridor where the sporting goods store was located. Just before they reached the storefront, Marco said, “An alpaca? You think De Gea looks like an alpaca.”

“Well, that was delayed… You don’t?” Lucia walked into the store. She glanced toward the register, and her classmate, David, was standing there with a pair of boots in his hands, inspecting them for defects or something. “Take a good look,” she whispered to Marco. She thought of greeting David, but they weren’t really friends, just acquaintances from school. David, like his boyfriend, Juan, was a year behind Lucia. They had gym together one year, but no common courses otherwise. He was the best goalkeeper at school (since her brother, Iker, was no longer there), and he had a cute boyfriend, but she knew little of him beyond that.

Marco stared at David as they walked past him toward the wall of football boots at the back of the store. “Omg, now I’m going to picture an alpaca every time I see him. You’re a terrible person,” he hissed in her ear.

“Hey… there are a lot worse animals to be compared to, my friend. Alpacas are adorable.” Lucia went straight for the Adidas section. They were the brand worn by her favorite player which had initially drawn her to them, but she soon found them to be most comfortable for her as well.

“Do you think you really have time to pick out new boots?” Marco asked, knowing full well that his bestie could spend hours picking out her boots. She went through tons of new ones before finally settling on a fresh pair of the same old boots.

“No. I just want to get a good look at the new styles and colors.”

Marco chuckled. “Okay, sure. I like these blue ones over here.” He pointed to a pair of robin’s egg blue boots with a white diamond on the heel, and white laces.

Lucia nodded. “Those are cute, but I’m leaning more toward these pink ones with the orange on the bottom.”

“You would definitely stand out on the pitch in those.”

“Is that a bad thing?” she asked in a tone that answered the question for him: No.

Marco laughed, and said, “You know it’s not. But you’re already the best striker on the girl’s squad. I don’t think you need boots to make you noticeable.”

Lucia beamed. “Thank you, Marco. I just wish the ‘girls’ squad’ was actually a thing instead of a group of girls that play football after school on the ‘boy’s pitch’ because our school doesn’t believe in actually having a girls’ team.”

Marco frowned, and patted her shoulder. He knew that football was such an important thing to Lucia. He wished that they could change the minds of the people in power at their school. “Whether the team is official or not isn’t the most important thing. You’re still amazing.”

“Thanks, Marco.” She half-smiled.

“Can I help you find something?” David approached behind them with a wide, people-pleasing smile on his face.

“No, thank you. I’m just looking at the boots.”

“Can I get a particular size for you?”

“No, thanks. I was just looking.” Lucia smiled at him, and then looked to Marco. “We should get going.”

“Thanks,” Marco offered to David before he and Lucia walked out of the store. David was left wondering what exactly he was being thanked for since he did nothing more than offer help that they didn’t need.

Marco walked Lucia back to her family, and left the mall to go back to the coffeehouse. Lucia left a short while later with her family. The car ride back was filled with Lourdes chattering about all of the books she wanted to read in the bookstore, Xabi telling her that they couldn’t read that many books, and then Lourdes telling him that she would read whatever she liked.

“Guys, I’m back!” Lucia waved a greeting at Oscar and Lukas when she entered the bookstore. “How was it? I didn’t get a call, so I assume nothing catastrophic happened. Am I right?”

Lukas looked up from the book in his hands, and answered sarcastically. “We had a robbery, a small fire, and Oscar sexually harassed me.”

“What?! I didn’t…” Oscar squealed in rebuttal.

“Lukas… not funny, and don’t say that S-word in front of my three-year-old sister.”

“Oh, sorry. I didn’t see Lulu there. Hey, Lou!”

Lourdes broke free of the grip Xabi had on her hand, and broke into a run toward Lukas. “Looookas! Hey, hey, look at my shooooes!”

“Your shoooooes?” Lukas mocked, scooping Lourdes into his arms. She missed the mocking nature of his question, and simply nodded whilst kicking her little feet upward.

“See!!!”

“I do see! They’re so cute! Wanna trade?”

“No! Your shoesies wouldn’t eben fit on my feetsies.”

“I’ll grow your feetsies to Lukas size feetsies.”

“No!” Lourdes shrieked, and began flailing all of her limbs. Lukas placed her on the floor, and she raced toward her fathers. Lukas laughed and shook his head.

Stevie caught her, and picked her up. “Okay, Lulu, only inside voices now.”

“Okay, Daddy.” She lowered her voice to a whisper. “I will use my whipsery inside boice.”

“Oscar, go to lunch, sweetie. I’m here.” Lucia patted him on the shoulder.

Oscar nodded. “Thank you. I, um, it’s like ten after, so, um…”

“Just be back here by half-past, and we’ll call it even.”

“No, I…”

“I insist.” She knew full well that Oscar had likely had a busy hour with Poldi covering the joke-telling and ringing up while he actually hunted down books for patrons, and cleaned up the place. He deserved extra lunch time with his baby girl.

Oscar smiled, and nodded. “Thank you. I’ll be sure I’m here by half-past.”

***

“I bet it’s Daddy. It must be your Daddy.”

Oscar could hear Cesc’s voice growing louder as he walked toward the door. Oscar stood just outside the apartment door, having been buzzed in by Cesc without a word. He bounced on the balls of his feet, anxious to see his little girl.

“See, it is your Daddy. Look through the peephole.”

Oscar narrowed his eyes. He could just imagine Cesc holding his tiny baby girl up to the peephole in his door. “Cesc, are you going to let me in?”

“Maybe… are you going to greet Julia? She’s watching your every move through the peep hole.”

“She’s seven months old. I’m not sure she even comprehends what’s happening to her right now.”

“Daddy called you stupid, Julia. I’m sorry for that.”

“Cesc! Don’t tell her that.”

Cesc swung the door open, and mocked him even though the voice he used was far too low and slow to be match Oscar’s. “She’s seven months old. I’m not sure she even comprehends what…” He paused for a moment, and when he spoke again, his voice had returned to normal. “Blah-blah-blah. Come in.”

“Why are you so cranky?”

“I should ask you the same question.”

“I only have an hour off work for lunch. I want to spend it with my daughter eating food rather than standing at your door, waiting for you to open while you dangle my daughter in the air with her head pressed to the peephole.”

“It was nothing like that,” he rebutted even though it was sort of exactly like that.

“Sure, it wasn’t.”

Cesc rolled his eyes. “Just come in, and take your daughter if you’re dying to see her so much.”

Oscar took Julia from Cesc, and kissed her cheek. “Did she take a nap yet?”

“She fell asleep as soon as you left, and woke up like an hour ago, or something.”

“Good.”

“This is actually not the first time I’ve watched Julia, in case you don’t remember.”

“I remember, Cesc. Where’s Julia’s bag?”

“Why? I just changed her. Her nosepicker isn’t here. What could you possibly need to do?”

“My sandwich is in the front pocket.”

“What? That disgusting crumpled thing… I threw it out.”

“You what? That was my lunch!!”

“The bread was brown! It was rotten!”

“It was _whole wheat_ bread, Cesc. It’s supposed to brown.”

“Well, the mayo was also brown!!”

“IT WAS PEANUT BUTTER!”

“Ahh.” Cesc nodded. “That would explain the color then.”

“That was my lunch,” Oscar repeated. “Now I have nothing to eat.”

“Dude, chill.”

“Cesc, that is, literally, all I had to eat for lunch.”

“Well, that’s dumb to start off with. You should definitely eat more than a shitty little sandwich.”

“A SHITTY LITTLE SANDWICH IS ALL I COULD AFFORD!” Oscar’s shouts caused Julia to cry. His heart felt like it was being squeezed, and he immediately held her a little tighter to his chest. He bounced and rocked with her, kissing her head, and shushing her. He whispered an apology in her tiny ear, and she finally quieted down.

Cesc was stunned silent, but when Julia stopped wailing, he seized the moment to speak. “I’m sorry, Oscar. I didn’t know, okay? I didn’t mean to upset you, or offend you. I can get us something to eat. It’s no problem. I’ve been keeping the place stocked in case Julia needs anything. I have a cupboard full of baby food jars.”

Oscar sighed. He felt like a charity case again. “You really don’t have to do that. Any of it.”

“I do, man. I love Julia. She’s my girl. We’re bffs.”

Oscar couldn’t help laughing a little. “Thanks, Cesc. I’ll pay you back for whatever food I use today though, because…”

“Nope! I refuse. It’s on me. I’m thinking…” Cesc stopped speaking when he heard a key turning in the front door lock.

Oscar turned toward the door. “Were you expecting someone?”

Cesc shook his head. “It’s probably my brother.”

A moment later, Cesc’s brother, Xavi, pushed open the door with his food, and walked inside. His arms were occupied with two stuffed paper grocery bags. Lettuce poked out of one; fresh-baked whole grain bread, the other. Cesc watched him walk inside, and then watched as Xavi’s boyfriend, Iker, walked in behind him. Iker had a bag in each hand as well, though his were plastic. Cesc could see the bright red of strawberries in one; cheery green of watermelon rind in the other.

“Hey! I didn’t know you were coming!” Cesc exclaimed, hopping up from his chair, and following his brother and Iker into the small apartment kitchen. Xavi divided his time between the apartment that he had shared with Cesc since their parents passed away, and Iker’s apartment near the university that the couple attended.

“We thought we would bring you lunch.” Xavi heaved his bags onto the counter, and started to unpack them.

“It looks like you brought more than lunch…”

Iker answered that time while he unpacked his bags, placing multiple fruits onto the counter. “We brought enough for a week or two worth of lunches.”

“You didn’t have to do that. I was going to the market soon.”

“You spend too much money on snacks. I brought good food – vegetables, fruit, meats, bread...”

“I buy stuff like that too!” Cesc protested. He wanted to look good and responsible in front of Oscar. He wanted Oscar to believe that he had good food to offer him after he threw out his lunch.

“Last week, you returned from the market with three boxes of sugary cereal and a giant bag of M&Ms.”

“That was once. Shut up.”

“Is that any way to talk to your wonderful older brother?” Xavi rummaged through the bag he was emptying, and removed a small bag of M&Ms. “I got these for you,” he said with a smile. Cesc grinned, and took the bag from him with thanks and a quick, vice-like side hug. “You’re going to break my arm squeezing me like that,” Xavi muttered when Cesc finally pulled away.

Cesc walked back to the living room area of the big open room that was his living room/kitchen/dining room. Oscar was quietly rocking his daughter. Awkwardness was eating away at him. Soon, he might be nothing, but a pile of clothing on which Julia would lie.

“Want one?” Cesc offered him the bag after he poured himself a small handful of the candy-coated chocolate drops from heaven.

“No, thank you.” Eating sweets before actual food had always made Oscar’s appetite even more ravenous.

“My brother brought food, if you didn’t hear him. We’ll eat in just a minute, okay? You want a sandwich or something?”

“Um, I wouldn’t want to take your brother’s food. I’ll just feed Julia, and then get back to work.”

“Help yourself, Oscar!” Xavi shouted from the kitchen. “Your money goes to buy food usually, or at least what passes for food in Cesc’s world.”

“I pay Cesc for a service. He can do what he wishes with the money. That doesn’t give me the rights to what he buys.”

“Oscar, you have to eat. I’m inviting you to lunch. We’re having something of a feast!”

“It’s a special occasion!” Iker added with a bright smile.

Cesc cocked his brow, and looked into the kitchen. “What special occasion?”

~~~

“What’s the occasion, Sr. Ramos?” Alejandro, Sergio’s family’s faithful butler/driver/anything-they-needed-while-they-were-staying-in-Valencia, asked when he opened up the beach house for Sergio, so he, Fernando, and Eden could carry in armfuls of groceries.

“Nothing, really,” Sergio replied, passing Alejandro by en route to the kitchen. “Just want to spend some time at the beach before school starts up. It was just supposed to be a day trip, but we’re thinking of staying longer now.”

“Hence the grocery bags,” Alejandro said with a nod. He followed Sergio and his friends to the kitchen. If they were going to carry all of the bags, he would be sure to put away all of the items inside of them. That was his job, after all.

“Yes.” Sergio smiled, and placed his bag on the table. He began to remove the food from inside, but Alejandro stopped him with a light squeeze of his forearm.

“Allow me,” he said. “Go, enjoy the beach.”

Sergio adored Alejandro, always had. He had always been like an extra father growing up. Considering that Sergio hadn’t always had two of them day in-day out, it was nice. Now that Guti was in the picture, it was good to have a third father that couldn’t scold him, but would always be there to help him. Alejandro, though attractive, kind, and hard-working, had never found a lasting love of his own, and made a family for himself. Sergio often wondered if he wanted a family. When he was younger, he would watch Alejandro working meticulously in the kitchen, and ponder why the man spent so much of his time in his home, and not in one of his own. Alejandro was only about twenty years older than his parents – not much, but abuelo age now. Still, his jet black hair had just started to show hints of gray and white speckled throughout, and his deep chocolate eyes were as bright as ever. Now, being in his late teens, Sergio found him to be quite an attractive man. He should have women, or men, all over him. Maybe now that he was alone with him, he would finally ask the questions that his fathers deemed ‘rude.’

“You guys go,” he said to Eden and Fernando. “I’ll help Alejandro, and be right out.”

“Sr. Ramos, please.”

Eden and Fernando disappeared through the kitchen door that led to the backyard. “Alejandro, please. What’s up with the Sr. Ramos bit?”

“I am unfamiliar with your guests.”

“You know Fernando! I’ve showed you a thousand pictures of him.”

“This is our first meeting.”

“So, what? That doesn’t mean you have to call me Sr. Ramos. Stop doing that.”

“I apologize, Sergio. It was my attempt at professionalism.” He smiled, and his cheeks creased. His eyes seemed to grow wings in the form of deep lines that stretched to his temples.

“I like unprofessionalism.”

Alejandro patted his shoulder, and the smile lingered. “How are you, my boy?”

“Good, great, actually. Starting my last year of school.”

“I know! I’m proud of you.” He got busy loading the refrigerator with the vegetables and meats that Sergio purchased.

Sergio thanked him, and slid onto a stool at the island. He had meant to help him, but he was distracted by the question he was so eager to ask. “Alejandro, can I ask you something?”

Alejandro paused what he was doing, but did not turn to look at Sergio. “Absolutely anything.”

“Did you ever have any kids? I never heard about any.”

Alejandro heaved a sigh, and went back to loading the groceries into the refrigerator. “I never did,” he replied. “That’s not to say I didn’t want any… I love children. I’ve always adored you.” He finally stole a glance at Sergio. He smiled, but it wasn’t quite enough to make his eye wings appear.

“Thank you,” Sergio said, blushing a little. “I always thought of you like another father. We used to come here so much during the summer when I was young.” The endless Valencia summers ended with the death of Sergio’s mother almost ten years before when Sergio was only eight years old. The summer house had been her fantasy, her love. There were still touches of her in everything. Before Raul had the master bedroom renovated several years ago, her perfume still lingered in the bed linens, and the walk-in closet. Raul had all but given the house to his son, and Sergio was fairly certain that once he had graduated high school his father would legally sign the place over to him. Sergio understood that it was painful for his father to be here, but he missed the summers nonetheless. Not that he would ever complain about Guti’s chosen Marbella summer vacations.

Alejandro placed the last of the groceries he had into the refrigerator, and closed the doors. “It warms my heart to hear you say that, Sergio.” He placed a tan, wrinkled hand on his shoulder, and gave a gentle squeeze. “You have always been like a son to me. Now, go… Join your friends.”

With a smile on his face, Sergio nodded, and turned away. He was halfway to the French doors that led to the backyard when Alejandro called out to him. Sergio turned quickly. “Yes?”

“That man of yours is a looker.”

Sergio blushed, and grinned. “He is, huh?”

“Does he make you happy?”

Sergio shrugged his shoulders, smiling and nodding. “He’s a good guy.”

“I’m happy for you, Gitanillo.”

Sergio grinned, and thanked him again before running outside to meet up with Fernando and Eden. Alejandro busied himself with the rest of the groceries as soon as Sergio was out of sight. Sergio was shocked to find the other guys already stripped to their boxers, and in the pool. “Hey! You started without me?!”

Fernando put both hands atop Eden’s head, and shoved him under water. “How could we resist swimming in this awesome pool?!”

The awesome pool of which Fernando spoke was another vision of Sergio’s late mother. She had always wanted an in-ground pool with a waterfall, and a small grotto.

Sergio shook his head as he watched Eden swim under the sparkling clear water. He pointed to him when he was just a few inches from his boyfriend’s leg. Fernando looked a moment too late, and Eden latched onto his leg, pulling him under the water.

Sergio stripped down to his shorts, climbed atop the stone grotto, and jumped off into the deep end. Fernando and Eden were splashing around, wrestling each other in the shallow end. He swam over to them, grabbing Fernando around the waist, and pulling his body against his. Fernando laughed, and laid his arms over Sergio’s around his waist. He took hold of his hands, and slid his fingers between Sergio’s. Sergio pressed his lips to his neck. Eden’s cheeks blushed, and he swam away, giving the love birds some alone time.

 

“Sr. Ramos.” Sergio was wrestling Eden in the deep end when he heard Alejandro’s voice beckoning to him. He shoved Eden away, and swam toward the edge of the pool.

“Alejandro, I told you to call me Sergio!” He smiled up at the older man.

“Sergio, I have prepared some dinner for you and your friends.”

“You didn’t have to do that! I bought a lot of stuff to grill. I had it under control.” Sergio hoisted himself up out of the pool. He ran his fingers through his hair, water droplets flinging behind him.

“I was happy to do it.”

A strand of dripping wet hair fell into Sergio’s eyes. He flicked it back, and offered Alejandro a smile. “Thank you. We appreciate it.” Sergio glanced over his shoulder at the frolicking boys in the pool. They probably hadn’t even heard the announcement about dinner. “Well, they would appreciate it if they knew.” He laughed. “You can go home if you want to, Alejandro. I’m sure we can take care of things. We’re only going to be here a day or two.”

“I think I’ll stay in the small extra bedroom, if that’s okay.”

“Of course. You’re welcome to stay wherever you’d like, as long as you’re sure you wouldn’t rather be at home.”

Alejandro offered nothing more than a shake of his head to close that subject. “Come inside, and eat. It’s keeping warm on the stove, but that won’t last for long.”

“I’ll get them out of the pool, and we’ll get right to it. Do you want to join us?”

“No, thank you. I had a small portion while I prepared it.”

“Good. I appreciate you, Alejandro.”

The butler offered another quick nod, and walked back into the house. He made his way to the back of the house where the small guest room was located. He would remain there, reading, until Sergio and his friends had finished their dinner.

“Guys! Get out of the pool. It’s time for dinner!”

“But, Sese! I wanna keep swimming.” Fernando pouted at his boyfriend.

“Alejandro prepared dinner for us. You can swim later.”

“But we’ll have to wait thirty minutes after we eat,” Eden whined.

“You’ll have to wait forever if you don’t get out now. I’ll have Alejandro drain the pool.”

Fernando used the ladder to climb out of the pool, and walked toward his boyfriend leaving wet footprints on the patio behind him. “Why are you so cranky, Sese?”

“I don’t mean to be cranky, baby, but I really want to eat this dinner. It means a lot that Alejandro prepared it for us.”

“Of course, it does. I’m sorry.” He brushed his fingers over Sergio’s chin, coaxing him forward, and then planting a quick kiss on his lips.

“No need to apologize.” He pressed a quick kiss to his lips before pulling back. “Go get dressed in the pool house, baby. I’ll set the table.”

 

“I guess that meal was worth getting out of the pool.” Fernando smiled at Sergio across the table.

“I’m glad you liked it. You guys can head back out to the pool, if you want. I’ll clean up here, and join you.”

Alejandro appeared in the doorway of the dining room as if his butler senses had been tingling. “I can do the cleaning up, Sergio. You join your friends outside.”

Sergio offered the older man a smile before he quickly made his way outside with Fernando on his right arm; Eden at his left side. “What do you guys want to do?” he asked, glancing first at Fernando, because though he would never say it, his opinion meant more to him than his other friends. Fernando shrugged his shoulders, so he turned to Eden.

“Do you have anything to drink?”

“We just had water with dinner,” Fernando pointed out. So innocent.

Eden laughed, and rolled his eyes. “I meant alcohol, Fer. For those of us that actually drink.”

Fernando’s full lips pouted, and he looked at the ground passing beneath their feet. “I drink,” he mumbled.

“One glass of wine at Easter and Christmas doesn’t really count,” Sergio admitted.

Fernando pulled his arm away from him for that small betrayal. “Do you have anything, Sergio?!”

“There’s a liquor cabinet in the pool house, but if you finish any of the bottles, you have to pay to replace them. My dads aren’t keen on underage drinking when they’re not around to supervise, and they’re never keen on that much underage drinking.”

“I’m fine with that,” Eden said at the same time that Fernando said, “Your dads never come here anymore.”

“They do sometimes,” Sergio retorted, ignoring Eden. His jaw was tight when he glared at Fernando. He didn’t know why it was different to be reminded of his mother’s death by Fernando than it had been Alejandro, but it was, and he didn’t like it. Fernando didn’t understand. How could he? Both his parents were still very much alive, healthy, and happily married. Not that he begrudged him that.

Fernando nodded, and muttered an apology. Sergio chose to ignore it, and walk a little faster to the pool house. He could really use a drink now.

~~~

“You’re moving in together?” Cesc asked in disbelief when Xavi and Iker shared their big news with him.

“Gee, little brother, I thought you’d be happy for me.”

Cesc’s face twisted. “I’m just shocked. You’ve only been dating for like five months.”

“Almost six,” Iker defended.

Xavi put his arm around Iker’s waist. “And we have known each other for years.”

“So… are you buying an apartment, or what?”

“Cesc, I own this apartment, remember? I bought it with the money we got from Mom and Dad’s life insurance.” Cesc and Xavi’s parents had died two years earlier in a car accident. Overnight, Xavi had become a twenty-year-old millionaire and the guardian of his fifteen-year-old brother. Things were rough at first, but he knew his parents had put their faith in him for a reason. With the help of his father’s business partner, he figured out what to do with the money, bought a place for them, and raised Cesc the best way he knew how. Some days, he wondered if Cesc would have turned out better with the guidance of their late parents, but most of the time he was proud of his parenting skills.

Cesc paled. “So, you’re kicking me out?!”

“Cesc.” Xavi shook his head, and laughed a little. “Of course, I’m not kicking you out. Iker is just moving in.”

“Is that okay?” Iker asked, patting Cesc on the shoulder.

Cesc nodded. What else could he do? It was clear that his brother had already made up his mind. If he protested, Xavi would only be cross with him. “It’s fine with me. Congrats.” He mustered up a half-smile, and then went to join Oscar at the table.

Oscar sat at the end of the table with Julia on his lap. He quietly ate his sandwich and pretended not to be aware of the conversation taking place while Julia kicked her legs out in front of her He only glanced up for a moment when Cesc plopped into the chair next to him.

“Can I take Julia, please?” he whispered, holding his arms out toward Oscar and the baby, but staring at the floor beneath their feet.

“Sure,” Oscar whispered, though he wanted to ask why.

When Cesc gently took the baby from his arms, and cradled her to his chest, Oscar knew why. Julia was like a comfort object for him. He wanted to ask Cesc why he needed comfort, or even offer comfort himself, but he just sat there, nibbling at his sandwich. If Cesc had wanted to talk to him about his problems, he would have done so willingly. Oscar wasn’t one to pry. After all, he wouldn’t want anyone prying into _his_ business.

“I don’t think he likes the idea,” Iker whispered to Xavi. They had moved the conversation into the kitchen, but as it was adjacent to the dining room they feared Cesc might hear anything above a whisper.

“He just needs some time to adjust to the idea,” Xavi said, rubbing his thumb over Iker’s cheekbone. He pressed a soft kiss to his lips. “He gets along with you just fine. He’ll adjust.”

“That kid has been through enough, Xavi. I don’t want to be one more thing that he has to adjust to.”

Xavi took a step back, and crossed his arms over his chest. “You seemed a little hesitant when we first started discussing this. Are you using my little brother as an excuse to not move in with me?”

Iker’s jaw hardened, and he crossed his arms, mirroring the smaller man. It took a moment for him to form the words, but finally, he hissed them out. “Are you serious?!”

Xavi stood up straighter, attempting to look a little taller. “Well… are you?”

“I cannot believe you would accuse me of something so disgusting.”

“I’m not _accusing_. I’m asking!”

“That you would…” Iker stopping speaking when he realized that his voice had risen well above a whisper. He exhaled in a rush, and resumed whispering. “That you would even think that I would do something like that…” He shook his head. “I would never use Cesc in any way, and you should fucking know that!” With the last word, he jabbed the index finger of his right hand into the center of Xavi’s chest.

“I’m sorry…” Xavi mumbled, staring at Iker’s hand as it retreated from his aching chest. Iker had poked him pretty hard. He had the urge to rub the spot, but he kept his arms tightly crossed.

“You better be really sorry. That really hurt. I’m going home, and I don’t think I’m coming back for a while.”

“Iker, please…” Xavi reached for him when he started walking toward the door.

“No. I need some time to think about what I’m doing with a man who thinks I would use his broken little brother to my advantage.”

Iker walked out of the kitchen and into the dining room without another word. He immediately noticed Cesc cradling the baby against his chest, gently rocking her, and whispering to her. He recalled Cesc doing the same thing the day he got the news that his parents had been killed. Instead of Julia, he had been cradling the teddy bear his father bought for him the day he was born. Iker had only been friends with Xavi then, but he was still around a lot. He had never seen Cesc look as pitifully broken as he had that day. He felt an ache in his chest for fracturing him again today.

Iker paused for a moment, considering his next move carefully. Finally, he changed his trajectory, and walked to Cesc. “I’m sorry, Cesc,” he whispered, pressing a kiss to his thick black hair.

Cesc jumped a little, startled by the sudden contact, and looked up at him, chocolate eyes blinking. His long black lashed dusted his cheeks. “For what?” he whispered, because Iker had.

“Upsetting you.” Iker ruffled his hair. “I’m going home now.”

Cesc frowned, and rested his cheek against Julia’s head. “You don’t have to, Iker. I’m sorry for not acting very happy.”

“It’s okay, Cesc. You don’t need to apologize. I’ll see you in a few days, maybe, a week.”

Xavi stood in the doorway watching the scene unfold silently, but with Iker’s words he had to break his silence. “A week?!”

“A week,” Iker growled, turning to glare at him. “Cesc, if you need anything, you have my number.” With that, Iker walked to the door, opening the door, and stormed out.

Cesc started to cry. “I’m sorry, Xavi. I didn’t mean to make him leave. I just didn’t know how to react to the news. It’s just…”

“Cesc, don’t.” Xavi walked to his side, and ran a hand through his thick hair. “It’s not your fault. I said something hurtful to him. It’s not your fault, I promise.”

Oscar was nearly trembling from the awkwardness of witnessing this private quarrel. “I, uh, I need to get back to work now, I think.”

“It’s only half past,” Cesc protested, wiping his eyes.

Oscar stood from the table, gathering his plate, and the bits of sandwich he had remaining. “Yeah,” he replied to Cesc. “But I don’t want to be late.” He thanked Xavi quickly as he passed by with his dish. Sensing that Cesc needed further explanation for his quick escape, he added, “Lucia’s fathers were there when I left.”

~~~

Stevie sat behind the desk in his office at Lucy’s. “So, why do you want this job, Bastian?”

Bastian sat across the desk from Steven in a comfortable brown leather armchair. He pondered the question carefully. He couldn’t very well give the true answer – to make enough money to keep my boyfriend well-fed. “Well, Sir, yours is one of the most respected businesses in town and…”

“One of the only ones left with whom you have not been employed,” Stevie interjected. “You have quite a career history, Bastian. Two months walking dogs for several people in our neighborhood, three and a half months working at Scoops, Six months at Sports & Stuff, and traveling down the list to the most recent: two weeks at the Pretty Paws Pet Salon. What happened there?”

“Frankly, Sir…” He paused as if he wanted Stevie’s permission to be frank. Stevie nodded. “Washing dogs is kind of gross.”

Stevie had to stop himself from laughing, but a smile peeked out. “Thank you for your honesty, Bastian, but son, how am I supposed to look at this work history, and think that you’ll be any more loyal to my place than you have been to almost every other business in town?”

“Well, sir, because…” A lightbulb popped up over Bastian’s head. He sat up a little straighter. He knew just what to say to get Stevie wrapped around his finger.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments are much appreciated. They inspire me to write more. Please leave some if you enjoy the work, have any questions, or constructive criticism.
> 
> I hope to have the next chapter up quicker than I did this one. Hope you all enjoyed. Thanks to those of you who are patiently waiting for more chapters. <3 xx

**Author's Note:**

> If you enjoyed the fic, please do let me know. You can leave kudos, comments, or messages on my Tumblr. Love you all! xx


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